Now Officially Introducing the Pioneer Valley Chapter

Well, it is now official. The Pioneer Valley (western Massachusetts) chapter of CyclingSavvy is now recognized on the CyclingSavvy blog. The chapter currently comprises one instructor (me, Eli Damon, of Easthampton) and six other CyclingSavvy graduates. So far, all graduates who live in the region were trained in Portland, Maine, by John Brooking and either Toni Ferrell or myself.

There are some special challenges in getting classes started here in the Pioneer Valley, but I am hopeful that they will be overcome by next Spring. You can learn more from the following resources.

About the author

I was born in 1977. I am principally a math teacher and have been teaching since the age of 17. I have a B.E. in computer engineering from SUNY Stony Brook (2000) and a Ph.D. in mathematics from Umass Amherst (2008). In the Society for Creative Anachronism, I am Lord Eli of Bergental, member of The Order of the Fountain.
I first learned to ride a bike, in the common sense, at age 7. Due to a visual disability I cannot acquire a driver's license. I once thought of this limitation as a severe one. I made some trips by foot, bike, and bus, and relied on friends and family members with cars to give me rides for some other trips. For the most part, however, the difficulty I had in traveling prevented me from living what most people would consider a full life.
I learned to DRIVE a bike at age 27, and it radically transformed my life. Suddenly, I could go wherever I wanted, whenever I wanted, in a reliable, flexible, carefree manner. It felt as if I was no longer disabled.
Now I travel almost entirely by bicycle. I have found that good cycling habits provide me with more freedom and flexibility than I could ever achieve through driving a motor vehicle. I have cycled in ten states and the District of Columbia, on a wide variety of roads under a wide variety of conditions. I have made trips of up to 200 miles.